At the start of this jolly drama about Maggie's fledgling political career, a title screen comes up with the phrase: "How Margaret might have done it.

At the start of this jolly drama about Maggie's fledgling political career, a title screen comes up with the phrase: "How Margaret might have done it."

In other words, take everything you see with a pinch of salt. Or maybe a skip-load. That might be the only way you can cope with this portrayal of the Iron Lady.

It shows her as a fun-loving, playful, conga-ing woman who was lusted after by men, and had a bit of a Marilyn Monroe meets Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct moment when she met the Tory Chairman of Candidates.

We start in 1949, when Margaret Roberts, as she was back then, was a "naace young gell" of 23, desperate to get a parliamentary seat.

She just had to get a constituency first. But the old boys club was not going to make it easy. After all, a woman's place was in the home, not the House.

From her first ever rousing speech, which got her a patronising pat on the bottom, to finally winning her Finchley seat, it was a real uphill slog. and you actually end up feeling quite sorry for her (I know, the wonders of dramatisation. Andrea Riseborough's excellent performance helps, too).

Along the way Mags bagged a husband, Denis (Rory Kinnear), and became a mother to twins Carol and Mark, who give rise to lots of in-jokes.

My favourite: "Can I go to Africa one day?" a young Mark asks his mother. "I won't cause any trouble."